Rick Hamilton: Maine, A Love Story

In Maine, A Love Story, self-taught Portland painter Rick Hamilton captures the rugged poetry of everyday labor along the coast of Maine. With layered textures, vibrant colors, and a loose, intuitive painting style, Hamilton honors the working people of the state—lobstermen, dancers, and tradespeople—through expressive mixed media compositions. Each canvas brims with movement, joy, and (sometimes) the artist’s signature hidden cat, inviting viewers to explore intimate, human stories told through abstract forms and rich surface detail. His works like Let’s Break Some Rules, Bring Some Fish Home, and It’s What We Do Each Day evoke Maine’s cultural spirit with humor and heart.

Featuring standout pieces such as Three Islands Maine, Working the Coast of Maine, and A Postcard from Maine, the exhibition blends contemporary coastal art with folk storytelling. This show is a must-see for collectors of Maine art, fans of narrative painting, and lovers of textured mixed media on canvas. Hamilton’s playful yet sincere exploration of people, place, and process embodies the best of Portland’s local art scene. Bold, spontaneous, and emotionally resonant, his work celebrates connection and craft in a way that’s both deeply personal and widely relatable.